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VIP Tires buys suburban Boston service garage, signals more acquisitions to come

Center Automotive in Needham, Mass. Photo / Courtesy, VIP Tires & Service VIP Tires & Service, a privately held chain based in Auburn, has acquired Center Automotive in Needham, Mass.
By Renee Cordes

Auburn-based VIP Tires & Services has added to its growing regional footprint with the acquisition of Center Automotive in Needham, Mass. — and says more deals could follow.

“VIP is aggressively considering acquisitions and [we] are currently in talks with several opportunities,” John Quirk, VIP’s owner and executive chairman, told Mainebiz.

Terms of the Center Automotive acquisition were not disclosed. It comes nine months after VIP expanded into Connecticut by purchasing Joe’s Tire Shop in Waterbury.

“We are thrilled to expand our operations in Massachusetts, building on the strong legacy of customer service that has endured at Center Automotive for decades,” Quirk said in a news release. “Our goal is to help the Center Automotive team through our ongoing commitment to industry-leading education and new, state-of-the-art equipment and technology."

Growing chain

With the latest addition, VIP Tires now operates 73 branches across Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts and Connecticut, and is northern New England’s largest privately held automotive service provider. Out of 731 total employees at the company, 324 are in Maine.

The Needham store will be co-branded, keeping Center Automotive in its name for several years before switching to VIP branding. Located in a Boston suburb, Center Automotive is a 15,000-square-foot facility with 14 service bays.  

Center Automotive employs nine people, including owners Jim O’Brien and Paul Gardner. Both will remain with the company for the next month while five of their colleagues will stay on for longer under the new ownership.

Quirk and Tim Winkeler, VIP’s president and CEO, held conversations with O’Brien and Gardner for almost five years as the owners mapped out their business exit plan and considered several potential acquirers.

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